Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was today in Tirana, Albania, where she participated in the latest summit of the European Political Community (EPC).
In the wake of the events of the last days and President Putin not showing up in Türkiye to meet President Zelenskyy, President von der Leyen announced that the EU is working on a new set of sanctions, including on Nord Stream 1 and 2, a lower price cap for crude oil, further listings on the shadow fleet, and more sanctions on Russia's financial sector.
"For us it is important to have peace. Therefore, we have to increase the pressure on President Putin until Putin is ready for peace," the President told journalists at her arrival to the summit.
The President also stressed the importance of the gathering in Tirana. Europe can be an area of shared prosperity and it has grown closer together over the last years in the face of arduous challenges.
"Today, Europe is awake – wide awake. And we know that we must leap forward: We have to close the innovation gap, boost our competitiveness, build our own resilience, and widen and deepen the network of partnerships around the world. We all have learnt that when there are big crises, Europe certainly provides some of the big answers," the President told fellow leaders.
She described the tasks at hand to further connect European and foster peace and stability. The Ukraine Facility, and the Growth Plans for the Western Balkans and Moldova are opening countless opportunities, and the President announced that the EU will soon have its own strategy for the Black Sea region.
She also spoke of the connectivity agenda linking Europe to Central Asia, which follows up to the first ever EU-Central Asia Summit, which took place in April. The agenda offers investment prospects in cross border transport infrastructure, energy security, and digital links.
President von der Leyen concluded by highlighting that the EPC is more than an idea or a forum: "Our web of partnerships has been developing at the speed of light during the last three years. This is what is making the EPC more than an idea or a forum. It is the expression of our ability to address and master together the challenges that occur as Europeans."
In the margins of the summit, President von der Leyen and European Council President Costa, also met the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, and separately, the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan.
President von der Leyen commended the two leaders on the finalistion of a peace treaty and underlined the EU's wish to invest in regional connectivity and bring the region closer as a guarantee of peace and stability.
